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Updated: Jun 26, 2026
08:38
Using a Bacterial Pathogen to Probe for Cellular and Organismic-level Host Responses
Published on: February 22, 2019
Cross-disciplinary demands of multihost pathogens
1Division of Environmental and Evolutionary Biology, University of Glasgow, Glasgow. d.haydon@bio.gla.ac.uk
The Journal of Animal Ecology
|January 24, 2009
Summary
This study models infectious disease spread in carnivore communities, revealing how social behavior and species interactions impact canine distemper virus outbreaks. Understanding contact structures is key to predicting disease dynamics in wildlife populations.
Area of Science:
- Ecology
- Epidemiology
- Computational Biology
Background:
- Infectious disease transmission is influenced by host population contact structures, which can be complex due to demographic and spatial factors.
- Canine distemper virus (CDV) outbreaks in wildlife highlight the need to understand transmission dynamics within multi-species communities.
Discussion:
- Craft et al. developed a simulation model to explore CDV spread through a multispecies carnivore community.
- The model incorporates species-specific contact structures, including social organization, ranging behavior, and interspecific interactions.
Key Insights:
- The model helps infer the roles of different species in the spatio-temporal spread of CDV.
- Simulation results can explain observed CDV incidence patterns, such as those seen in Serengeti lions during a 1993-94 outbreak.
Outlook:
- This modeling approach can be applied to other wildlife diseases and communities.
- Further research can refine contact structure parameters to improve disease spread predictions.
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